Do vitamins actually work?

[morbidd]

Hello all,

I'm currently ill with some sort of flu (have been testing for covid but negative), and it's got me thinking I need to look after myself more.

I certainly will look at a better diet and exercise but wondered if vitamin supplements actually worked for people?

If so, what people took and what effect they had on them?

Thank you

I've tried multi vitamins before with no real effects. I was recently diagnosed as low in vitamin D so am now taking drops, the difference is very noticeable, particularly on my mood.

It depends what you take, and what for.
Vitamin D in the winter is always going to be a good idea.

I don't think it harms you if you take a 3 month course after an illness to help boost you up. Long term though will depend on your access to good quality food as well as general diet, eg a fresh or properly stored apple will be better for you than one that's at the end if it's shelf life even though they both tick the better diet box.

Your body needs a certain amount of vitamins and minerals. If you have a varied and healthy diet that supplies these essential nutrients then taken extra won't make much, if any, difference.
If your diet is lacking in any of them, then taking the appropriate supplements should help.
Certain ones - zinc, vitamin C and vitamin D are all necessary for a healthy immune system so it certainly wouldn't hurt to take supplements for a while. Vitamin D is not available in sufficient quantities in food so a good Vitamin D3 supplement is always advisable - particularly in winter but I take it all year round as I am not outdoors without sun cream much. Vitamin C is water soluble so if you take too much you just excrete it (can cause diarrhoea though if you take too much). I take a 1000mg effervescent vitamin C daily. Aldi do tubes of 20 for around £1.00.

Depends upon whether you actually need them or not. If you don't need them, you either pee them out harmlessly or you end up with problems (Vitamin A, for example, is a bad thing to overdose, excess Vitamin C just gives you expensive urine).

Eating healthily is by far more important, but if you are eating healthily with some deficiencies despite that, by all means supplement appropriately.

Look at your diet first, it should be as varied as possible. You shouldn't need supplements ( except vit d in winter), everything you need is better coming from food.

I take a daily A-Z multivitamin/ mineral as I don't have much of an appetite these days
I also take Lutein( have glaucoma and macular degeneration)
It certainly won't do you any harm

My GP says they're a total waste of money and I should just eat properly. I know that I'm not that great at eating well so I take them, just in case.

I take iron which I have taken for at least 45 years.

B12

Pro Bio Live Max 6 Billion probiotic

High strength Vitamin c in winter

Vitamin D in winter

Lungwort

Sea moss

Flaxseed oil as I'm a vegetarian and can't have fish oil for joints.

Magnesium a few weeks before and during a holiday as we are very active and travelling is tiring.

I think that's it!

Dc2 has afrid so sees a dietitian due to low weight/vitamin deficiency.
We were advised because not all food groups are covered to give vitamin d, a folic acid supplement, alternate between a calcium supplement and an a-z supplement. Was told the jelly ones are no good and ordinary multivitamins don't cover the full range of vitamins and minerals we need. Alternating between different vitamins stops you getting too high amounts of things.
Dietitian basically said if your diets healthy and varied it should be OK without (or a short term intervention when been ill) however if your short on a specific food group it may be advisable to add in certain supplements plus vitamin d in winter.

I have a few ailments and get really tired and needed a Power Nap nana nap every day.

I started taking a few different supplements and now feel much better. I don't need a nap and I have the energy to go to the gym 3 or 4 times a week.

It has made a huge difference to my life for the better.

It might just be a placebo but it has worked so who cares?

Many people lack nutrients as they are naturally deficient in them. Everybody is different.

Medication can affect this also.

If I don't take vit c and zinc daily I get colds but when I stop taking it I get colds. So there's proof right away.

Magnesium taken 9pm at night gives me a solid 8 hours sleep. Guaranteed. It also prevents migraines for me unless I eat too many trigger foods.

I also take Floradix all year round as my body frequently lacks iron and b12.

Vitamins don't work it's been proven you just piss them out before they do anything useful

Everyone should take a vitamin D supplement in the UK between October and March.

I check blood test results for Vitamin D fairly regularly, and I'd say over 80% of the time people are deficient.

There's also evidence which says that Vitamin D helps with respiratory infections.

It’s actually advisable to take it all year round in northern europe and at minimum from October to April

I eat a balanced diet so I don't take anything extra except for vit D3 and magnesium for restless legs.

Yes
Vit D

B12 and iron for women as a minimum

If you look at any academic working in nutrition and studying the research, they typically take supplements themselves. There’s lots of good evidence to support many of them.

I take omega 3 for anti-inflammatory properties, and find IBD flares up when not taking it.

Vitamin D – notice dramatically longer, thicker, healthier nails when taking this. Otherwise they tend to break off when quite short.

Take myo-inisitol (a B vitamin) for PCOS and for the first time in decades I’m having regular periods.

Take several others with good research behind them.

One thing I’d say is to invest in good quality supplements (websites like labdoor who test quality can be useful). The cheap ones that you get from quality save or boots will likely not be as pure / high concentration and may contain lower quality eg oils or whatever.

also take iron for anaemia, which has made a noticeable difference to breathlessness, energy levels, etc.

takeaway being – yes, supplements really do things in your body…!

How can they not work?.. I'm taking doc prescribed iron and my iron levels are slowly rising so why wouldn't other supplement work?

Some of them do
Like iron. Vitamin D etc

Proper high dose vitamin C liquid will help I'm sure of it.
Also replace things that deplete with age like MSM

recommended daily allowances are maintenance doses and vitamin C has been studied a lot in the past to be very important to immune health.

I swear by soluble vitamin C if I'm feeling coldy, Berocca or similar. Always have a pack in the house for winter, I don't eat a lot of fruit as I'm diabetic.

And vitamin D - I had terrible pain in my hips that has become far better with a daily high dose tablet.

Vitamins aren't medicine, so they won't cure anything other than a vitamin deficiency. If you're less able to fight your flu because of a vitamin C deficiency then you can fix that, but taking vitamins obviously won't make you immune to viruses.